Smoking weed was the best and worst thing for my social life. I met so many friends through partaking. Unfortunately once I was stoned, I became socially inept and crippled with anxiety. So it brought me to the water, but I was unable to drink.
I think the biggest problem with drug culture is the lack of education, discussion, or guidance around the reality that it’s very rare for any drug to be taken on a daily basis without eventually becoming a crippling or degenerative problem in some way(s). Also, I cannot thank you enough for explaining the importance of CBD being present in someone’s system whenever THC is being consumed.
@@BlakeElliott35 agreed man, when I was younger and didn’t understand it I would end up doing nothing but smoking but now that I know more on a neurological and physiological level I use it and it’s more of a net gain. It still has its negative but now that I know what those are I can just plan around it and make sure I do it at a time where that doesn’t come into play.
Its all about setting rules and sticking to them. If you just use things whenever you feel like it, you will feel like it more and more until its all you feel like doing. Saving it as a treat and rewarding your own discipline keeps you in check
When you're subscribed to research journals and a part of circles of practitioners and researchers, sometimes a lot of this reaches people following it at the same time too.
Be careful with that channel, though, they tend to be sponsored by bill gates foundation and similar rich people... Not all they say is fact based or for the well being of their viewers.
I was a heavy weed smoker for a couple years and stopped cold turkey last fall. It pretty much distracted me from my misery, and when I stopped, I basically dove head first into mindfulness, meditation, introspection, things like that. I cant remember how it happened, but I realized that no amount of weed was going to make me feel better and if I wanted to stop being so sad and feeling empty all of the time, I was gonna have to take my life by the balls and actually do something about it. And I did! I'm much happier for it, albeit I still have moments when I struggle with depression and anxiety, but for me, the key to "beating" it was to change my mindset. I started smoking again at the beginning of summer every other week or so, and I'm thinking about quitting again because now it's just a fun thing to do, but the high is not so enticing anymore unless I'm focusing on something or lounging around for the day 😭 It didnt really help my anxiety and depression, but it did help me look at my life a different way and realize some really important things for myself.
I keep doing this same thing and unfortunately arriving at the same conclusion each time: No amount of willpower will get me the amount of money I need to live the life I want/need. Because according to my parameters and paradigms in accordance with this unfortunate world (dumb, but unavoidable)- it would take an absurd amount, or an equally absurd stream of "income." I wish I knew how to fix it. Can't even live in the woods or a trailer park due to some law or regulation or another. Y'know?
now only if you had noticed you can do all of that while smoking and boost your introspection multiple-fold. Moderate chronic depression was essentially a weeks fix with some weed and meditation - haven't had problems in a decade almost :)
Light cannabis use (dry herb vapes) alongside therapy and positive lifestyle changes have been beneficial to my PTSD. Therapy and positive lifestyle changes were helping a bit, but adding a very light amount of cannabis helped me make better progress in therapy and with my lifestyle changes. Since I use such a light amount, I'm able to use it when practicing emotional regulation/reducing panic attacks at home so I can be better at managing my symptoms even when I'm not actively using. I'm a medical card holder and follow my doctor's instructions. It is a tool like any other, and when part of a larger treatment plan, it can be a tremendously effective one. I would certainly have been OK without it, but I'm better off with than without. EDIT: Also, VERY important! I didn't even try it for the first time until I was 32.
@Baptized_in_Fire. Haha no, I got PTSD as a teen, lived with it for a very long time, then finally got some proper support in my early 30's. It's been a wild ride.
As someone with ADHD who basically screwed up their life and opportunities as a habitual smoker in their 20s… I’m glad you’ve presented this research. I hope folks younger than me take this seriously and do actually therapeutic treatment to work through their life problems rather than numbing themselves.
@@shrubbie69 I wish you all the best. I don’t know what your life is like, but be patient embrace the pain that comes with your growth. It’s all worth it in the end.
@@J-jizzy_ it’s like a quote in South Park: “[weed] makes you fine with being bored.” Not necessarily just boredom, but complacent. Like Dr. K said, that’s ok for once a week or less, but only as a reset after tons of growth and hard work.
Love from another member of the ADHD tribe ❤ I had an association I'd like to share when reading your comment: I don't know your circumstances. Since you said that you screwed up your life, some videos come to mind - on the topics of: gifted kids, needing to catch up, not being ready yet. (Not sure about the titles rn, but I think just these terms will likely be sufficient.) Again, I don't know what your circumstances are, but I would encourage you to check those videos out to see if maybe your mind is tricking you into seeing a worse future than you actually are heading towards. ❤
I was a heavy weed smoker for a few years, starting when I was 17. It created a lot of problems for me and I have a lot of shame about that time in my life. I am still young though and am accepting that part of my journey, and in many ways, I am wiser from the experience
I’ve recently started smoking pot to help with my severe depression. I’m on antidepressants and find that I have a low-intensity enduring feeling of anxiety throughout the day. I definitely feel that I’ve gotten pretty strongly habitually addicted to pot and am currently trying to stop 😅 This definitely has given me more ammo on halting this bad habit of mine!
I'm lowk in the same boat but I've got it down. what I'd recommend is just incrementally lower the amount you take in succession, if you do choose to take high amounts take it at the end of the day but to where it's wearing off as you go to sleep (dr. k doesn't bring it up here but it's actually incredibly bad for your sleep even if you think it's improving it. this is actually just how sleep and sleep debt works in general), and at the beginning of the day micro-dose it. this has been massively helpful to me in pseudo-treating some problems, saving money, and improving my overall health.
Be careful mixing other substances with your antidepressant medicine. I'm not an expert, but i did read up on it before my first acid trip (same night i also smoked weed) and alot of shit can go REALLY bad when mixing shit without knowledge. Alcohol is one of those don't mix with ANYTHING, but weed did also have some suprising combinations that weren't physically fatal, but very bad for your mind and the trip in general. And some medications can 10x the paranoia and visuals which can quickly fuck with your mental health. Take care bud!
I used to smoke almost everyday for three years. I’ll be honest it helped me alot when i was having a hard time with life (getting over an ex, failing classes in college, etc etc) Weed really helped me loosen up and at the time it helped me stay in the moment. But at some point my mind started to suffer and i started to develop crippling social anxiety. What once saved me was now hurting me. Ive been 10 months sober and im happy i have my brain back.
Absolutely. The biggest reason to use imo is getting over a bad break up. Obviously it won't be a 24/7 fix but it assists you especially where you are extremely low. It might save some people from ending it
The past 2 years I smoked all day every day, at work, at school, in bed, even just to spend time with my family. I recently quit for a new job that conducted a drug test, and I haven’t felt this good in a longggg time. Sobriety feels like a brand new drug and it’s now my favorite “drug”. I’m quite literally high on life and can’t wait for my next hit! 😋
My take away is people need to be honest with why they smoke weed. "To enhance pleasure" Once you accept you're doing it for recreation then you can put guardrails to avoic addiction. Thank you Doc❤
2 months sober from weed as of this week. I really resonated with this. Weed was an incredibly effective escape for me, but caused my problems to pile up, and my anxiety started bordering on psychosis. I'm now left with worsened adhd and my working memory is not what it used to be.
The biggest thing to consider is how long have you were smoking and how much. I've been a daily smoker for about 10 years now and I probably won't fully recover for 6 months to a year once I decide I'm ready to quit. Just give it more time fam. Your body and mind WILL recover/re-adapt
Been smoking nightly for 5 years and have “quit” like 8 times. Quitting feels like catching up on what I’ve been running away from, and it’s so easy to run away again. Gonna try to quit again next week, hopefully I find a healthy substitute.
This is very relatable. I hope you find success. I’m nine months weed free and i still have some difficult weeks. It comes and goes, but I never want to go back. Good luck ❤
I really loved this. My only real issue is that those studies aren't defining what TYPE of weed they're using. I know these aren't super scientific terms but generally speaking, more CBD leaning indica strains have a calming effect. And the higher THC sativa strains (which are getting stronger and stronger bc they're popular) can cause more anxiety and even psychosis. So from my perspective, everything in the video made sense, but was based on either an average of weed or more likely a higher thc strain since they're more popular now. So I would love to see more studies looking at it as the spectrum it is
I am also interested in hearing about the different strains used. We well know that CBD is often beneficial for Physical health but that THC is a mind altering substance and is bound to have detrimental effects on mental health.
I was a heavy marijuana user for a few years until I had a psychotic break. I had to drop out of college and it pretty much ruined my life for a while. If you have a history of bipolar disorder or psychosis in your family PLEASE reconsider smoking weed regularly.
this happened to my older sister when i was in high school, and that shit scared me STRAIGHT. we didnt even know bipolar ran in the family. if it helps (for u or anyone else), she started yoga to manage her mental health which led to her finding her calling as a yoga instructor, and she found the love of her life who was also bipolar & going sober & now they keep each other accountable & are getting married! i just wanted to add that ending because even if i would not wish that nightmare upon anyone in the world, as long as you commit to improving (and admittedly, have a strong support system) things can absolutely get so much better🩵
I feel like it really helped me push through survival mode when I was 18, reevaluate my childhood and thought about stuff I had long repressed. I feel like there was a notable difference in self-awarness/consciousness before and after consuming. That being said it just brought these memories back but i didn't cope at all, got super depressed feeling like I was a coward and kept smoking. I was using it like a crutch, barely went to class, really don't know how I graduated. Looking back at it, I spent 18 years just trying to avoid violence, then 5 years depressed about how I wasted my childhood. When I was 24 and doing something I was passionate about abroad, I remember thinking “damn I didn't know you could be this happy”. But after I came back I fell back into destructive habits. After 8 years of consuming it, I'm over a month clean. It was painfully clear that it had become a liability, especially the carts (carts really the devil man), I was just numb, letting days go by not doing much besides getting high and playing games. Learnt some coping techniques through cbt, feeling like I'm doing better, practicing mindfulness.
@@freezinginferno2106 the carts /vapes take the usage and addiction to a whole new level, so quickly. I'm turning 24 in December and have been smoking daily since I was 16. I think im done.
Not really like I don't know why ued comment that assuming. I'd do two pipes a day after work and never smoked the vapes cuz i didnt like em. Obviously worse off for it but if making wrong assumptions about people on the Internet makes u feel cool then go for it lol
Thank you. I recently got back into smoking after taking a Tolerance Break after I left my dispensary job and during that break i was sooooo much more productive and killing my goals. And I got into a funk and I've been using it daily and it's time to take my life back
Weed got me through some rough stuff, if you’re in a rut and you want to numb yourself while you get out, I won’t fault ya. But yeah I think I’m ready to think clearly again :) I just gotta remember to exercise daily to get that dopamine
Dude this exact same thing happened to me. Stopped using it a few months back and got a cannawater from my gas station to relax for the day and the second I got home this video got published lol
I'm sick of seeing people talk about the effects of weed without first talking about what leads people to a dependency. Mental health is the overwhelming factor that needs addressing, because simply quitting weed to replace that dependency with something else doesn't magically fix mental health or trauma history.
It’s a billion dollar business that makes many claims but acts as masking tape. If you do somatic experiencing , and work out all of the abuse, neglect, and trauma out of you’re body, learn to meditate, and adopt a mindfulness practice then weed or anything else is not required.
I use it for chronic pain and insomnia every day but also go to therapy twice a week and work pretty hard at it so I’ve appreciated having the science explained. It’s a lot to think about in my situation.
For me, the deal-breaker that led to me quitting cannabis was the dreamless sleep. Dreams are so important for memory consolidation and recontextualization. There are many examples of times when dreams helped me to reprocess trauma and other junk from my past.
For some odd reason i only dream on rare occasions, but mostly when i am depressed or in general anguish in life. Or atleast that's when i actually wake up and know/remember i dreamed. But i kinda stopped dreaming when i was around 18-19 years old. Maybe you can dream without remembering it?
@@ouwle6618If you smoke weed, it’s a known side effect to stop you from having dreams completely. I have dreamt maybe 5 times in the past 12 years I’ve smoked. I do really dislike that about it, I used to lucid dream 😢
As a former healthcare worker with schizoeffective and Bipolar 1 this video was very informative and is accurate i was on antipsychotics such as vraylar etc i stopped it because i found that cannabis helped treat my symptoms quality of life etc however initially when i first get high i go through a peak of paranoia and eventually it just subdues with breathing exercises, if you’re going through similar issues psych therapy ,exercise meditation sauna everyday and praying have really helped me manage these psychological disorders god bless i love this channel.
Hey Dr K, love the videos, but you made a slight error in this video. Synthetic marijuana, or K2, is not THC. Instead, it’s synthetic chemicals that also activate the cannabinoid receptors.
Imo as an addict, I suggest staying away from ALL drugs. People love to say marijuana is "natural". By the time you smoke it, it's not. Realistically, you shouldn't have to ingest something to feel good. Look, life sucks sometimes, but doing something to "take the edge off" leads to bigger problems that you don't need. Believe me..
"Natural" doesn't mean anything where else is it supposed to come from? The Nether realm? Poison dart frogs are natural too aren't they? Salt water covers ~70% of this planet so I would argue it could be seen as natural too. You still should not drink it.
My journey with weed taught me so many things. I'll never use it again, but I don't regret or beat myself up for using anymore. I've educated myself on it's effects, and realized the harm outweighs the benefits.
@@Carlos.Riverathe difference is we actually need water to survive unlike any recreational drug, so the brain tries to convince you you need it when really you dont
@@mattpassos5689 most recreational drugs are also forms of medicine who just happen to have desirable side effects. For instance heroin is a very popular recreational drug because it can make you feel incredibly relaxed and generally care free, but it was also an incredibly important part of my treatment once because without something like that i would have been in far too much pain to ever sleep or eat.
No, moderation is not key. If you can't go without it and need to justify it you are habitually addicted to the substance or in case of alcohol most likely actively addicted to the substance. Weed isn't good for you and the reason people use it often enough make it worse because the only reason you should use it is if you are actively enjoying a euphoric setting and want to heighten that setting for a time once in a blue moon.
This was very insightful! Weed is "illegal" where I live but still pretty widely used as it's not illegal to be under the influence, just illegal to be in possession of. I struggle with occasional insomnia and a recent, unexplainable, and pretty severe uptick in anxiety and was ready to start smoking regularly to "help" with that, but now I'm definitely reconsidering. Moreover, if I'm being honest, I wanted to do it because it seemed like an easier option than what I most likely need, which is psychotherapy and getting in more exercise. But what is life if not embracing the suck, right?
Loved this video, HG team. Very high quality. The papers and dedication to nuance were superb. I personally love the incorporation of scientific papers in videos like these. This video could be used as a gold standard for future videos. Keep it up!
NGL, this is exactly where I was in 2018 when I saw friends use marijuana to "treat" their stuff and only seeing things go downhill. Did a bit of research then, this is what I found. People REALLY want weed to be a miracle drug, but it's just not. Obviously. It does suck to see people be swallowed by it on occasion.
Disabled Adult with Severe Chronic Pain, Major Depressive Disorder, long-term cannabis user and former "daily" opioid user. I find all this to be on point. Cannabis actually seems to aggravate my psychiatric symptoms to some degree. But the decrease in opiates that cannabis allows me to manage outweighs the negatives. I'm down from 140mg/week to 50mg/week. Cannabis lets me _forget_ that I'm hurting. I can't emphasize how important that is when rawdogging pain. I'm very active in therapy and I manage to keep things under control. After years of experimentation, I've found this to be _my_ happy medium. Everyone has to find their own path. I wish you luck.
I think the most important thing he said is to limit usage to people over 25 years old. Trust me fellah's, partaking as a teenager or college student just isnt' worth it.
seriously like i was never more confused or mentally unwell than i was in high school and college…weed “fixing” me would have been a temptation i absolutely could not have resisted
I hung out with the weed groups during college because they were the only ones not actively pushing me away. They were chill with me being present. I didn't smoke much. Occasionally or share 1 J with them some days. They would go for 3-4 a sesh.
Im currently trying to quit thc. Ive smoked heavy every day for last 10 years and i wish i didnt but i loved it so much. Everything you said made sense to what I've been thru. Im glad you've said the truth i respect that. Gonna try my hardest to overcome this addiction and this helps but its definitely NOT easy man
I've been wanting to step away from the reefer because it's too expensive to build a tolerance, but I also enjoy it, and it does help with my MDD, ADHD, and PTSD. This video helped me set a goal to backpedal to once a week, or only during an episode. Great video, Dr. K!
Great video! I was thinking on this last night after i said outloud id been smoking since 17 with no more than a three day break. Not even getting "high" anymore but simply in a routine. I do have a slipped disk in my lower spine and struggle with appetite. But these sound more and more like excuses rather than reasons. Beyond that I've always relied on it to "let go" of the worlds emotions or people around me and their feelings. It builds up in me to a point i either want to explode or implode. Which is another form of "why meditate when i can roll a blunt" All in all hella called out but not in a bad way. Always more work to be done 😌
Cannabis has always been 50/50 here, really helped my life and really harmed my life. A lot of the problems of the data will be how people use cannabis, what dosage, what time of day. what strain (cbd/thc,) what frequency etc If we could talk about drug culture / education to maximise benefits and minimize harms we would see different results. There's a difference in the benefit of me smoking a fat high thc joint with tobacco at a time of high stress / boredom to escape - eating dominoes and watching a film VS having some well dosed cannabutter, going to the gym or a yoga class, heading home to make dinner and finish up the day with some chores before preparing for a new one. The reality is, the mass public are like the first example
I have Epilepsy and I will, occasionally, have CBD honey (with NO THC) in my tea in the evening. And it doesn't get me high, it can sort of quell some of the pre-seizure triggers I might have started to feel (like small twitches, headaches, some weird 'heart skips' if you will). But I've never been comfortable with weed, even when people would tell me "Hey pot can really help your seizures". Like, there are so many weird things that your brain COULD already do to you, that most of the people I know, even WITH neurological conditions, would rather use something CBD based and eliminate the "high" or euphoria state altogether.
I struggle immensely with depression and suicidal ideation and weed is a quick fix to stop those thoughts. I understand in the long run it’s turning into an addiction but it’s been the only thing that truly fixes those deep rooted issues. Working on quitting now
We dont really understand your context I guess. But that sounds like saying “alchohol has done nothing but hurt me and my driving skills on the highway”
A psychiatrist prescribed me with Rivotril medication for anxiety, 1/4 twice a day. I can confidently say that it helped me finish my studies. It helped me in many ways, frustration by being overly self critical while studying something new wasn't as painful, helped me not isolate as much which resulted in attending class, asking questions not just in class but also reaching out to people I've never talked to at the uni for help. Occasionally i would smoke weed while on it and it was scary, breathing stopped being automatic, i had to remind myself to breathe otherwise i was suffocating. Eventually Rivotril stopped working for me, probably built up tolerance
I think balancing cannabinoid ratios, CBD and CBG are 'non psychoactive' but when they are taken in combination with THC and Terpenoids they achieve the entourage effect. The Other non intoxicating cannabinoids seems like they are still psychoactive in the brain, but more like neuroprotective in the way it binds to the receptors and modulates their activity. I wonder if CBD/g can modulate the neurotransmissions of heavy marijuana users.
Not all cannabis is the same. How the plant is grown and cared for makes a massive difference. Especially when it comes to meditation. Dr K is right, daily use of a shamanistic medicine is not advised. Life just sucks for most of us, most of us were raised by shit parents and cannabis helps us manage life. It’s still an addiction and is just a coping mechanism for the inner pain. I changed my life as a daily user and it was my last my crutch to drop.
I have social anxiety and at first, my social anxiety while being high felt worse than being sober. Currently, my social anxiety has improved over all from constant exposure to different social situations, both sober and high. I realized over time that while being high, my emotions are heightened and difficult to control, which led to some social dysfunction like crying uncontrollably during slight feelings of embarrassment. Since I began noticing these patterns over the past year, I’ve been trying to take better care of my emotional well being and at times, smoking weed did help me think through times of anxiety because it forced me to focus on one thing at a time and take things slow. I now try to practice this patience with myself in a sober state so soon I’ll be competent with putting this habit down.
Cannabis helped me lose a shit ton of weight, and put my t2 diabetes in remission. A1c 5.5 for over 3 years now. It helped me regain control over my health. It helped with pain, desensitize to overstimulation, and sensory discomforts, like sweating, and heat so I could be more active. Big problem with the current system is that prescribing it doesn't come with ongoing followup care and support across the medical professions. The guidance in using it effectively for different conditions just isn't there yet. Federal legalization could really help .
@@TEEANVEE there's the million dollar question. Something I have been exploring myself for the past four years. For some reason weightloss seemed easier while on cannabis than without. I believe it is multifaceted but possibly unique for me and my body chemistry. But it helps dull pain. It helps reduce hunger pains so intermittent fasting is easier, and movement feels better. It may or may not have chemical properties that affect metabolism. I had read that despite cannabis users consumming more calories than the average person, they also have lower body mass indexes. Does it possibly affect hormones which, especially for women, makes a huge difference in whether weightloss efforts are effective. When a woman is stressed or feels chronically unsafe, the body responds by conserving energy and stores more fat. The cannabis was a tool to healthier habits. Good habits build upon each other when you go into it with intention. It's something that I keep searching for available research on, but it's just not there yet. But basically when you feel good, it's eadier to build on habits that make you feel good. After awhile, the need for cannabis diminishes as restoration of healthy sleep, activities, and eating become integrated into lifestyle.
In time, I expect that we will get more structured care/advice for utilizing it for different conditions. Having protoclos and medical guidance is essential. It's different than other pharmaceuticals though, it is not precision medicine, but it can still be dialed in( to an extent) and have guidelines. There are absolutely ups and downs, risks alongside the benefits, and all those need to be considered and addressed. Full legalization can help alleviate many issues, and pave the way to better research and understanding of this plant.
when i was super depressed and suicidal weed did actually help because one of my biggest problems was every experience felt the same no matter what i was doing for years at that point, it was driving me insane. i think i got high a total of 15 times and never had any again. i think it worked like that for me because i genuinely did not enjoy it 70% of the time but it had such a strong effect i was able to reset during that time. the last time i got high was awful and effected me for about a year after
Your videos about Marijuana alone have begun to REALLY show me how much I'm maybe putting myself into the mental illness I'm in or at the least it's amplifying my negatives. Sooooo I gotta quit, I don't like being sick in general so I Mena I gotta treat the illness of my brain the same lol. Thank you
I had this friend who was always super passionate when they talked about things and since they became a stoner it felt like they did a 180 and it was just impossible trying to talk to them. Gg ff the friendship atp
dude im experiencing something similar…my friend who is a perma-stoner now only ever wants to watch reality tv, her podcasts, or scroll twitter when we’re together. we used to do all those things in small fun doses but can we CHAT?? go out and DO STUFF?
I stopped using THC when I realized what you said in the video. It doesn't work long term. Funnily enough, I've been off of it for a couple months and decided to go to my local gas station and get a cannawater just to relax for the day and the second I got home this video popped up on my feed. Spooky but also hilarious lol
Algorithm baby! It genuinely is freaky sometimes. We know our phones are tracking our whereabouts and listening to us all the time. We gave those permissions to the device. These can be turned off in the settings. I was thinking of getting some for the weekend as well. This video pops up after that thought.
What does the research say for long term effects of weed for someone who has used it daily for a few months or years and then stopped? How long for a person to recover from them? Is it possible for some people to not ever recover fully?
I think this is a great video because i dont think weed is a crutch that helps you with your problems, it just feels like. It really should only be used to enhance your experience on a special occasion. I can say this as someone who smokes weed everyday because I don't want to i literally just cant stop cuz im addicted. I'm gonna try to take it slower and get to that once a month stage but for now i can confidentiality say i agree with dr.K. marijuana is not some cure all that will solve your problems and isnt something that should be used daily. Cuz i just smoke to basically feel normal and i bet once i stop smoking so frequently ill feel way better. Its just hard to get to that point since im ADDICTED. but yeah thats my take thank you.
Thank you Dr. K, I needed this one. I find a lot of the symptoms mentioned in this video are problems I deal with- especially replacing good solutions with the grass. I’m gonna try to cut back and get off, anyone who’s thinking about doing the same feel free to message me and maybe we can set up a system where we check in on each others progress or something and support thru the process! Love
Highly informative work Dr K , i can confirm that it does mess up the dopaminergic architecture big time and clearly the risks outweigh the short term benefits !
Anyone else feel kinda, like, alien with discussions like these? I don’t drink or smoke, never have in my life. Never felt like I needed to, but it’s like everyone around me no matter where I go has done before, does, or at least tolerates drinking or smoking. Maybe I’m just too sensitive coming from both parents having histories of addiction in some shape or form, but it’s like… we don’t *need* this stuff, but we encourage it like a rite of passage. I’m always feeling like a total alien when it comes to stuff like this.
Hey Doc, thanks very much for all the useful advice and info. Here's some more for you. According to the book, Shamanism and Tantra in the Himalayas, Nepalese Shamans know cannabis as one of 108 different entheogenic plant medicines. Shamans told the authors that cannabis should not be used by normal people regularly. They said that the only people that should use cannabis, are witches (definition evil, bitter, no doubt traumatised old women who harm with their magic, as opposed to shamans, who heal). Given that I fit the definition of a witch as a neurodiverse post menopausal woman, and cannabis was originally a women's medicine, I'd like to see trials on my demographic before being convinced that it's bad for me.
Great video Doc. I absolutely love cannabis, and I absolutely use too much. I take it orally for sleep and has been consistently effective the last few years, but smoking seems to have a much lesser effect for sleep. I’m actively cutting back at the moment and will most likely scale back to an occasional user. It’s very subjective for me, I’ve never suggest anyone smoke weed for sleep, but low dose thc edible oil works great for me even in the long run(ugh is it expensive though). Super helpful conversation Doctor, keep em coming!!
This... Makes a lot of sense. Saddening, but it makes sense. Anecdotally, I began taking CBD supplements to help with my anxiety and stress. Worked wonders... For all of a few weeks. Then, I began to notice it coming back. Was hoping it wasn't me building a tolerance, but this kind of confirms it... Also kinda depressing to know that the same thing happens with actual medication like Xanax... So then that begs the question, if this stuff helps in the short term but not in the long term, what are people supposed to do?
Weed users get so pissed when you tell them it's not all rainbow and sunshine. Like alcoholics and hard drug users are even more chill when confronted.
Tbf there's been a lot of lies and stigma associated with use . People were gaslighted into thinking it's all bad. If you're doing it in moderation and for the right reasons it can be beneficial.
@@Candidoppyeah i think OPs point though is that because it had been so gaslighted in the horrible direction people now gaslight it in a positive light and some people dont realize what they are doing by calling weed perfect
I had some trouble with THC addiction this year and went to an online community for help/guidance as I was experiencing THC withdrawal. I was honestly shocked by the response that I got from this space that was supposed to be for promoting moderation and supporting each other through tolerance breaks. People told me I was imagining things when I described my withdrawal symptoms. After what I experienced, I know first hand that there is not enough honest conversation happening about what weed does and how it can affect your mind and body. I had heavy daily use for about three months and experienced very, very unpleasant withdrawal when I stopped cold turkey. I had to take time off from work and needed support from my family to get through it. People in this online community were telling me that there's no way I could be having that kind of withdrawal after only using for a few months. But there I was, living it. I've been off weed for over a month now and my memory is still not back to normal. It only took a few months of me having a sort of breakdown and turning to weed as an escape for me to cause this kind of damage to my brain and body. People say it's a "safe" drug because you can't OD and die from it. But it really is not safe. It can be used responsibly, but obviously I'm not someone who was using it responsibly. And it fucked up my life pretty bad for a while there. I could have lost my job and had to embarrass myself by going to family for help with an addiction that I had fallen into very quickly. And it's not easy now to stay away from it tbh, even though I know it's bad for me.
I love that there is more research in this field. It's definitely a very complex piece of nature. In duality, maybe it can help us learn more about nervous systems and consciousness. I personally experienced pros and cons. Marijuana aided me in recovering from a traumatic brain injury from a car accident. It's also helped to me deal with trauma. It's helped me reach states of bliss, new perspectives, and creativity. As I say this, I know it's not for everyone. And it's definitely a cruel mistress if you abuse it. Also, it can get in the way of messing with REM sleep. Stay curious, everyone.
It’s incredibly difficult to access therapy if you’re using or dependent on cannabis. Many therapists either outright refuse to work with you while you’re using it or demand that you stop completely before beginning treatment. This approach feels unrealistic, especially because cannabis is often being used to manage or suppress something deeper that’s not being addressed. What’s most frustrating-and a real shame-is that with proper therapy, cannabis use would likely decrease on its own. But that opportunity is being denied when therapists refuse to engage. On top of that, it’s deeply painful to talk to a therapist about cannabis. They often focus entirely on the cannabis use rather than the underlying issues, which makes it feel impossible to move forward. This is such an important part of the conversation, and it’s being completely mishandled in so many cases.
I'm sorry but i have to disagree with one point: K2/Spice is not a "THC without CBD" cannabis variant, it was as you said synthetic, but cannabinoids that are only similar and it still has other effects that also raises the negative effects. They were also not created to get a higher THC strain or similar, they were created to get around the law and sell it legally because the molecule is different. A quote from the VUMC on why synthetic cannabinoids are problematic: "This may be due to SCBs being direct full agonists of the cannabinoid receptors, whereas THC is a partial agonist." And there are also a lot medical strains in the meantime that have 16-23% THC and only 0-1% CBD. And if they mixed that up in their papers then it's no wonder they get to that conclusions. I have an uncle that has been using Weed for years, and then when it was still illegal here in Germany and he couldn't get anything else he switched to a newer variant of K2/spice. He needed to be delivered in the hospital, had hallucinations etc. and needed to go into rehab for 2 months after that. You can also see people smoke high concentrated THC as resin and similar in really high doses and they got nothing afterwards. So idk if you looked closer into that. But i won't downvote for the disagreement. I think it's good to stay real and look at the facts and not praise it as the holy grail in medicine. (Even if i use it daily for my ADHD treatment) But as you said: it's important to not forget the other things you need to do to work on your root-cause of the Problems.
Been trying to quit for around a month now, and as much as I miss it and love the feeling, I know now that it is not beneficial for me in the long run. I became dependent on it and doing it multiple times a day. As soon as you quit after using frequently and consistently for a while, it takes quite the toll on you
Thank you for this very enlightening, informative and guiding video. I loved it. That being said, I'm gonna go and get drunk now. (In my defense, that at least means I go outside, so its like... touching grass-adjacent 😇)
For me its a double edged sword. Im a jazz singer, tango dancer and freestyle rapper. My whole live revolves around improvisation. Whenever I smoke weed it guarantees that I will get into a flow state and have a ton of fun improvising. However if I start using it too often it messes with my willingness to stick to my practice routines and it fucks up my mood. And sometimes I cross the line and start smoking daily for a week or so and have to stop for a while. But since ive started smoking weed 7 years ago I pretty constantly used about 1g/month and it didnt increase. I feel like its more beneficial for my well being than harmful. Its like there is the playful side where you are having fun with what you learned and the serious side where you are drilling new lick, scales, rhythms, steps and whatever into your subconscious. And if I dont smoke weed I heavily lean to the latter. But the other side: being playful, forgetting about the technique, getting into the flowstate and just doing something for the sake of it is equally as important and weed helps me with that. But if its too much weed I do too much of that and too little serious practice.
If you think the cons outweigh the pros to the point that you want to take action, I think one of the biggest thing that can help is telling someone you trust. Letting them in on how you feel about it before stopping and then updating them about your experience. Anything in life is easier if you have someone you trust and connect with listening to your experience.
I'm surprised I don't see any positive comments here. Marijuana often makes me more motivated, especially a good sativa. As a PhD student and video editor, some of my most productive ideas, research, and art have come from a good high.
I experienced an ego death after smoking a bunch of weed and doing yoga with Alan Watts in the background. I just hope that me continuing to smoke doesn't backfire
It is so true that depression and anxiety create the potential for weed abuse, now when I meditate more often and undergo therapy for over six months, I don’t feel the need to use it so often and to have such large doses as previously and because of this, I believe that I can Use it safely and in moderation, as long as it doesn’t become a habit and isn’t part of a regular use
thanks for the research Dr. K. i had no hopes with this to begin with xD its okay. its dope that we can get some insight in how it looks at a clinical way, and thats a lot already!
What i think is really hard to do scientifically is a subjective research study on for example people with manic depressive disorder how Marijuana affects them. For example for me I can sometimes smoke and go to gym, but then in some periods it gets to much and then I just get nowhere. What is key is to use everything the right way. For example also caffeine can be a source of energy but to much and to often it triggers anxiety and drains you. Nicotine can be a great stress relief l, but is very addicting. So my opinion is know your drugs, use them carefully and most of all learn to sit with your anxiety, practice mindfulness and love yourself. Be your best friend and laugh at your ego.
Dr. K is on point, here. Sometimes the truth is hard to swallow. Cannabis made me able to tolerate my life for a long time. It did nothing to help me truly accept my situation and do something about it.
My takeaway of this is this: using weed to deal with your problems tends to keep you from dealing with the root of the problems. But, how many people try to get help for their problems and just get pushed onto prescription medications, they don’t actually get the help they need to deal with the root cause, and are just expected to rely on medications to deal with their problems? I’m not sure that statistic is ever revealed or talked about! So is it wrong for those people to choose the side effects of weed over the side effects of prescriptions?
Has Dr. K shared any insight on the new cbd cannabis types, since they proport to be non-psychoactive? I would love to hear it(haven't watched vid yet)
It was kinda painful emotionally to watch this video, being high and bipolar and trying to fix my life… thank you for the information, I guess I have to start my sober journey 😔
Ff you want your life to get better as a bipolar, you need to get away from weed. Far away from it, weed with bipolar is like seeing a forest fire coming your way and then deciding to hide in a 18 wheeler full of gasoline. It really sucks, I know what you feel, I wish I never had to stop too. But when you get clean for a long time, you start to look at the situation from afar and then learn how, why and what the substance was doing with you. Life with bipolar is shit, but it can be less shit. I hope you get well soon!
My anecdotal experience is everything Dr. K says applies to me. I don't drink any alcohol anymore, but to occasionally (less than 4x a month) use some marijuana when 1. I am in a good mental space 2. Just for the purpose of relaxing It never helped as a self medication tool and now my experiences with it are better because I have better boundaries. It also hurt my ability to socialize so for me it worked best to watch a chill movie or listen to music for relaxing. I never tried marijuana until I was 25 and don't take a very high dose.
I have schizoaffective disorder with bipolar II. I used cannabis for many years to help with depression and relaxation. The slight hallucination provided by cannabis did not affect my schizophrenia and felt different than the schizophrenia. I also felt emotionally balanced and relaxed from stress.
im interested in your use of “used”-does that mean you eventually stopped using it (at least in a self-medicating way) when it stopped serving you? that to me indicates a non-addictive, healthy use tbh im curious because my sister was diagnosed with bipolar AFTER smoking a ton caused an extended delusional psychosis, and she has understandably not smoked since
I have Hippocampal Sclerosis and I found out in 2014. I was found seizing in my sleep. I have been smoking cannabis since my early 20's. I was prescribed Keppra, but recently weened myself off of it at the beginning of the year. Haven't had a diurnal seizure thus far.
After 10 years of daily/weekly/monthly and occasional weed usage my conclusion to a healthy consumption is the following; - don't smoke before 18 and if u do, do it once at a cricle of friends you a comfortable with beeing yourself. - don't smoke daily u have to trust me on that one - do not use to cope with trauma or at least only temporary (it's important that you have someone you can talk to/reflect) - if possible don't smoke alone (except if you're sick) - always respect the substance!
Just hit over five months pot free a few days ago. Mental clarity, anxiety, amount of negative/paranoid thoughts have gone down significantly. The tradeoff is having to deal with anhedonia, boredom, and lack of joy that pot would bring so easily.
Very good video, I am glad you didn't give in to the pressure to message the data into the answer a wider audience might want. I am a junior doctor in Australia where prescription cannabis can now be prescribed as a treatment for anxiety, depression and insomnia and am yet to see a patient who has benefited in those cases. I don't think it should be criminalised but prescribing it gives it a sense of safety to so many people.
I used to LOVE smoking weed, but using it habitually didn't help me in any part of my life. And after being stoned everyday for a while being sober feels quite refreshing I'm so much more mentally present and I'm better at pretty much everything, I now reserve smoking for when I've got nothing better to do and want to veg out and watch a movie or play my synths and create interesting textures.
I love the good effects of weed, it helped me get through a lot of psychical issues and my social anxiety,just realized how pointless it was to feel anxious in certain situations like talking to strangers etc. But the sideeffect of being lazy is horrible and id like to get rid of it and its so easy to fall into it and just lay down and melt into chair instead
Smoking weed was the best and worst thing for my social life. I met so many friends through partaking. Unfortunately once I was stoned, I became socially inept and crippled with anxiety. So it brought me to the water, but I was unable to drink.
What
@@egodblessn6363 he is stoned right now
if the only benefit for you was a social circle, the good news is this is what every hobby where you meet up irl does.
@@xXx_Regulus_xXxHey man, what you wrote has given me a lot of food for thought, thank you stranger
woah well said
I think the biggest problem with drug culture is the lack of education, discussion, or guidance around the reality that it’s very rare for any drug to be taken on a daily basis without eventually becoming a crippling or degenerative problem in some way(s).
Also, I cannot thank you enough for explaining the importance of CBD being present in someone’s system whenever THC is being consumed.
@@BlakeElliott35 agreed man, when I was younger and didn’t understand it I would end up doing nothing but smoking but now that I know more on a neurological and physiological level I use it and it’s more of a net gain. It still has its negative but now that I know what those are I can just plan around it and make sure I do it at a time where that doesn’t come into play.
funnily enough thats true for stuff like caffeine too.
Its all about setting rules and sticking to them. If you just use things whenever you feel like it, you will feel like it more and more until its all you feel like doing. Saving it as a treat and rewarding your own discipline keeps you in check
I love getting high and watching Dr. K tell us why marijuana is good but also bad
Real shiz
What I’m doing
Real asf
FR i literally just ripped
I feel called out
So, Kurzgesagt and Healthy gamer both doing a video on weed the same week. Coincidence?!! Probably yes.
"explosion of research recently" still coincidence; i agree!
@@JJimskyit’s in the last few years, this last year about 4000 on pubmed and 2023 even more
When you're subscribed to research journals and a part of circles of practitioners and researchers, sometimes a lot of this reaches people following it at the same time too.
Be careful with that channel, though, they tend to be sponsored by bill gates foundation and similar rich people... Not all they say is fact based or for the well being of their viewers.
It's a start to understanding. If only we had more research behind it.
I'm so happy to see certain topics being treated so openly by a specialist, wish tv was at least 70% about contents like this
Unfortunately this kind of content does not attract a lot of eyes in the mainstream mass media. Which means less ad revenue.
Great point! I also wish TV was like this
who even watches tv now
I was a heavy weed smoker for a couple years and stopped cold turkey last fall. It pretty much distracted me from my misery, and when I stopped, I basically dove head first into mindfulness, meditation, introspection, things like that. I cant remember how it happened, but I realized that no amount of weed was going to make me feel better and if I wanted to stop being so sad and feeling empty all of the time, I was gonna have to take my life by the balls and actually do something about it. And I did!
I'm much happier for it, albeit I still have moments when I struggle with depression and anxiety, but for me, the key to "beating" it was to change my mindset. I started smoking again at the beginning of summer every other week or so, and I'm thinking about quitting again because now it's just a fun thing to do, but the high is not so enticing anymore unless I'm focusing on something or lounging around for the day 😭 It didnt really help my anxiety and depression, but it did help me look at my life a different way and realize some really important things for myself.
I keep doing this same thing and unfortunately arriving at the same conclusion each time: No amount of willpower will get me the amount of money I need to live the life I want/need.
Because according to my parameters and paradigms in accordance with this unfortunate world (dumb, but unavoidable)- it would take an absurd amount, or an equally absurd stream of "income."
I wish I knew how to fix it. Can't even live in the woods or a trailer park due to some law or regulation or another. Y'know?
@@authaire the life you want is too much hard work, you say? Welcome to the real world...
now only if you had noticed you can do all of that while smoking and boost your introspection multiple-fold. Moderate chronic depression was essentially a weeks fix with some weed and meditation - haven't had problems in a decade almost :)
@@ErosArkheinym dr k just laid out years of clinical research and thats ur argument?
@@ErosArkheinym Well hey, everyone's different. What works for me might not work for you and vice versa, and that's okay 😊
Light cannabis use (dry herb vapes) alongside therapy and positive lifestyle changes have been beneficial to my PTSD. Therapy and positive lifestyle changes were helping a bit, but adding a very light amount of cannabis helped me make better progress in therapy and with my lifestyle changes. Since I use such a light amount, I'm able to use it when practicing emotional regulation/reducing panic attacks at home so I can be better at managing my symptoms even when I'm not actively using.
I'm a medical card holder and follow my doctor's instructions. It is a tool like any other, and when part of a larger treatment plan, it can be a tremendously effective one. I would certainly have been OK without it, but I'm better off with than without.
EDIT: Also, VERY important! I didn't even try it for the first time until I was 32.
So you got PTSD later in life. Gotcha.
@Baptized_in_Fire. Haha no, I got PTSD as a teen, lived with it for a very long time, then finally got some proper support in my early 30's. It's been a wild ride.
As someone with ADHD who basically screwed up their life and opportunities as a habitual smoker in their 20s… I’m glad you’ve presented this research. I hope folks younger than me take this seriously and do actually therapeutic treatment to work through their life problems rather than numbing themselves.
same, im only 21 tho and im quitting :) been about a week ❤
Daily smoker with depression. I suppose he’s right when he said those that are high stop doing things to rid of their problems haha
@@shrubbie69 I wish you all the best. I don’t know what your life is like, but be patient embrace the pain that comes with your growth. It’s all worth it in the end.
@@J-jizzy_ it’s like a quote in South Park: “[weed] makes you fine with being bored.”
Not necessarily just boredom, but complacent. Like Dr. K said, that’s ok for once a week or less, but only as a reset after tons of growth and hard work.
Love from another member of the ADHD tribe ❤
I had an association I'd like to share when reading your comment:
I don't know your circumstances. Since you said that you screwed up your life, some videos come to mind - on the topics of: gifted kids, needing to catch up, not being ready yet. (Not sure about the titles rn, but I think just these terms will likely be sufficient.)
Again, I don't know what your circumstances are, but I would encourage you to check those videos out to see if maybe your mind is tricking you into seeing a worse future than you actually are heading towards.
❤
I was a heavy weed smoker for a few years, starting when I was 17. It created a lot of problems for me and I have a lot of shame about that time in my life. I am still young though and am accepting that part of my journey, and in many ways, I am wiser from the experience
great mindset bro 🙏🏾 you’ll do well like this
bro is 18
@@matianz 100%
Glad you got out of it. Do your best to recover.
@@matianz23
I’ve recently started smoking pot to help with my severe depression. I’m on antidepressants and find that I have a low-intensity enduring feeling of anxiety throughout the day. I definitely feel that I’ve gotten pretty strongly habitually addicted to pot and am currently trying to stop 😅
This definitely has given me more ammo on halting this bad habit of mine!
I'm lowk in the same boat but I've got it down. what I'd recommend is just incrementally lower the amount you take in succession, if you do choose to take high amounts take it at the end of the day but to where it's wearing off as you go to sleep (dr. k doesn't bring it up here but it's actually incredibly bad for your sleep even if you think it's improving it. this is actually just how sleep and sleep debt works in general), and at the beginning of the day micro-dose it. this has been massively helpful to me in pseudo-treating some problems, saving money, and improving my overall health.
Be careful mixing other substances with your antidepressant medicine. I'm not an expert, but i did read up on it before my first acid trip (same night i also smoked weed) and alot of shit can go REALLY bad when mixing shit without knowledge. Alcohol is one of those don't mix with ANYTHING, but weed did also have some suprising combinations that weren't physically fatal, but very bad for your mind and the trip in general. And some medications can 10x the paranoia and visuals which can quickly fuck with your mental health. Take care bud!
Treat depression with exercise, weight lifting, and consistent regular sleep
I used to smoke almost everyday for three years. I’ll be honest it helped me alot when i was having a hard time with life (getting over an ex, failing classes in college, etc etc) Weed really helped me loosen up and at the time it helped me stay in the moment. But at some point my mind started to suffer and i started to develop crippling social anxiety. What once saved me was now hurting me. Ive been 10 months sober and im happy i have my brain back.
Absolutely. The biggest reason to use imo is getting over a bad break up. Obviously it won't be a 24/7 fix but it assists you especially where you are extremely low. It might save some people from ending it
The past 2 years I smoked all day every day, at work, at school, in bed, even just to spend time with my family. I recently quit for a new job that conducted a drug test, and I haven’t felt this good in a longggg time. Sobriety feels like a brand new drug and it’s now my favorite “drug”. I’m quite literally high on life and can’t wait for my next hit! 😋
you gotta get drug language out of your head
So happy for you!
My take away is people need to be honest with why they smoke weed.
"To enhance pleasure"
Once you accept you're doing it for recreation then you can put guardrails to avoic addiction.
Thank you Doc❤
This
2 months sober from weed as of this week. I really resonated with this. Weed was an incredibly effective escape for me, but caused my problems to pile up, and my anxiety started bordering on psychosis. I'm now left with worsened adhd and my working memory is not what it used to be.
trust me it gets better
The biggest thing to consider is how long have you were smoking and how much. I've been a daily smoker for about 10 years now and I probably won't fully recover for 6 months to a year once I decide I'm ready to quit.
Just give it more time fam. Your body and mind WILL recover/re-adapt
Been smoking nightly for 5 years and have “quit” like 8 times. Quitting feels like catching up on what I’ve been running away from, and it’s so easy to run away again. Gonna try to quit again next week, hopefully I find a healthy substitute.
This is very relatable. I hope you find success. I’m nine months weed free and i still have some difficult weeks. It comes and goes, but I never want to go back. Good luck ❤
I really loved this. My only real issue is that those studies aren't defining what TYPE of weed they're using. I know these aren't super scientific terms but generally speaking, more CBD leaning indica strains have a calming effect. And the higher THC sativa strains (which are getting stronger and stronger bc they're popular) can cause more anxiety and even psychosis. So from my perspective, everything in the video made sense, but was based on either an average of weed or more likely a higher thc strain since they're more popular now. So I would love to see more studies looking at it as the spectrum it is
I am also interested in hearing about the different strains used.
We well know that CBD is often beneficial for Physical health but that THC is a mind altering substance and is bound to have detrimental effects on mental health.
I was a heavy marijuana user for a few years until I had a psychotic break. I had to drop out of college and it pretty much ruined my life for a while. If you have a history of bipolar disorder or psychosis in your family PLEASE reconsider smoking weed regularly.
this happened to my older sister when i was in high school, and that shit scared me STRAIGHT. we didnt even know bipolar ran in the family.
if it helps (for u or anyone else), she started yoga to manage her mental health which led to her finding her calling as a yoga instructor, and she found the love of her life who was also bipolar & going sober & now they keep each other accountable & are getting married! i just wanted to add that ending because even if i would not wish that nightmare upon anyone in the world, as long as you commit to improving (and admittedly, have a strong support system) things can absolutely get so much better🩵
Happened to me as well. Few months of just being straight 24/7 sent me thinking of the meaning of everything.
I feel like it really helped me push through survival mode when I was 18, reevaluate my childhood and thought about stuff I had long repressed. I feel like there was a notable difference in self-awarness/consciousness before and after consuming. That being said it just brought these memories back but i didn't cope at all, got super depressed feeling like I was a coward and kept smoking. I was using it like a crutch, barely went to class, really don't know how I graduated. Looking back at it, I spent 18 years just trying to avoid violence, then 5 years depressed about how I wasted my childhood. When I was 24 and doing something I was passionate about abroad, I remember thinking “damn I didn't know you could be this happy”. But after I came back I fell back into destructive habits. After 8 years of consuming it, I'm over a month clean. It was painfully clear that it had become a liability, especially the carts (carts really the devil man), I was just numb, letting days go by not doing much besides getting high and playing games. Learnt some coping techniques through cbt, feeling like I'm doing better, practicing mindfulness.
@@freezinginferno2106 the carts /vapes take the usage and addiction to a whole new level, so quickly. I'm turning 24 in December and have been smoking daily since I was 16. I think im done.
@@DuckTreeGaming Your lungs are cooked
Not really like I don't know why ued comment that assuming. I'd do two pipes a day after work and never smoked the vapes cuz i didnt like em. Obviously worse off for it but if making wrong assumptions about people on the Internet makes u feel cool then go for it lol
Thank you. I recently got back into smoking after taking a Tolerance Break after I left my dispensary job and during that break i was sooooo much more productive and killing my goals. And I got into a funk and I've been using it daily and it's time to take my life back
Weed got me through some rough stuff, if you’re in a rut and you want to numb yourself while you get out, I won’t fault ya. But yeah I think I’m ready to think clearly again :) I just gotta remember to exercise daily to get that dopamine
I only think "clearly" on weed. I'm autistic AF tho
Coming out the fog is always the best. Living is better than not.
I know Dr. K always says he's not psychic but I just used cannabis for the first time in 10 years this week and now he's coming out with this video 😆
How was it? Thats quite an amount of time to be away from it then return. I'm curious what your experience coming back to it was like.
Dude this exact same thing happened to me. Stopped using it a few months back and got a cannawater from my gas station to relax for the day and the second I got home this video got published lol
exact same thing here lol i’m using today after an 8 month break 😅
Yeah. I'm an occasional user. I was just planning to get some for the weekend after a month. Next thing I know, this video pops up.
I'm sick of seeing people talk about the effects of weed without first talking about what leads people to a dependency. Mental health is the overwhelming factor that needs addressing, because simply quitting weed to replace that dependency with something else doesn't magically fix mental health or trauma history.
It’s a billion dollar business that makes many claims but acts as masking tape. If you do somatic experiencing , and work out all of the abuse, neglect, and trauma out of you’re body, learn to meditate, and adopt a mindfulness practice then weed or anything else is not required.
I use it for chronic pain and insomnia every day but also go to therapy twice a week and work pretty hard at it so I’ve appreciated having the science explained. It’s a lot to think about in my situation.
For me, the deal-breaker that led to me quitting cannabis was the dreamless sleep. Dreams are so important for memory consolidation and recontextualization. There are many examples of times when dreams helped me to reprocess trauma and other junk from my past.
Take melatonin and B vitamins...you shouldn't need drugs to have dreams. You probably just have a vitamin deficiency and don't get enough REM sleep
@@DishDetergent898i think what OP is saying is that marijuana stopped their dreams, and that was not good for them
@@DishDetergent898 Oh I meant I quit cannabis because it was affecting my sleep haha. Yes REM is super important!
For some odd reason i only dream on rare occasions, but mostly when i am depressed or in general anguish in life. Or atleast that's when i actually wake up and know/remember i dreamed. But i kinda stopped dreaming when i was around 18-19 years old. Maybe you can dream without remembering it?
@@ouwle6618If you smoke weed, it’s a known side effect to stop you from having dreams completely. I have dreamt maybe 5 times in the past 12 years I’ve smoked. I do really dislike that about it, I used to lucid dream 😢
As a former healthcare worker with schizoeffective and Bipolar 1 this video was very informative and is accurate i was on antipsychotics such as vraylar etc i stopped it because i found that cannabis helped treat my symptoms quality of life etc however initially when i first get high i go through a peak of paranoia and eventually it just subdues with breathing exercises, if you’re going through similar issues psych therapy ,exercise meditation sauna everyday and praying have really helped me manage these psychological disorders god bless i love this channel.
Hey Dr K, love the videos, but you made a slight error in this video. Synthetic marijuana, or K2, is not THC. Instead, it’s synthetic chemicals that also activate the cannabinoid receptors.
Yes he got it very wrong. It's two completely different things and saying that weed without CBD is synthetic weed is just such a wild statement.
Imo as an addict, I suggest staying away from ALL drugs. People love to say marijuana is "natural". By the time you smoke it, it's not. Realistically, you shouldn't have to ingest something to feel good. Look, life sucks sometimes, but doing something to "take the edge off" leads to bigger problems that you don't need. Believe me..
Yeah I know man I just need to learn to control my anger, I have to get high or drunk to shut myself down so to speak so people don’t get hurt
what about sugar and protein and caffeine
"Natural" doesn't mean anything where else is it supposed to come from? The Nether realm? Poison dart frogs are natural too aren't they? Salt water covers ~70% of this planet so I would argue it could be seen as natural too. You still should not drink it.
My journey with weed taught me so many things. I'll never use it again, but I don't regret or beat myself up for using anymore. I've educated myself on it's effects, and realized the harm outweighs the benefits.
Like any drug, moderation is key
Like everything. Water is healthy but drinking to much, and your body will have hipocalemia and could get a heart arrest
@@Carlos.Riverathe difference is we actually need water to survive unlike any recreational drug, so the brain tries to convince you you need it when really you dont
yes, like cocaine
@@mattpassos5689 most recreational drugs are also forms of medicine who just happen to have desirable side effects. For instance heroin is a very popular recreational drug because it can make you feel incredibly relaxed and generally care free, but it was also an incredibly important part of my treatment once because without something like that i would have been in far too much pain to ever sleep or eat.
No, moderation is not key. If you can't go without it and need to justify it you are habitually addicted to the substance or in case of alcohol most likely actively addicted to the substance. Weed isn't good for you and the reason people use it often enough make it worse because the only reason you should use it is if you are actively enjoying a euphoric setting and want to heighten that setting for a time once in a blue moon.
This was very insightful! Weed is "illegal" where I live but still pretty widely used as it's not illegal to be under the influence, just illegal to be in possession of. I struggle with occasional insomnia and a recent, unexplainable, and pretty severe uptick in anxiety and was ready to start smoking regularly to "help" with that, but now I'm definitely reconsidering. Moreover, if I'm being honest, I wanted to do it because it seemed like an easier option than what I most likely need, which is psychotherapy and getting in more exercise. But what is life if not embracing the suck, right?
Finally, some good fucking Pot
@@bcurtis785 reading that in Gordon Ramsey's voice is mandatory
@@okaysavage2564ah u made this better
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Loved this video, HG team. Very high quality. The papers and dedication to nuance were superb. I personally love the incorporation of scientific papers in videos like these. This video could be used as a gold standard for future videos. Keep it up!
NGL, this is exactly where I was in 2018 when I saw friends use marijuana to "treat" their stuff and only seeing things go downhill. Did a bit of research then, this is what I found.
People REALLY want weed to be a miracle drug, but it's just not. Obviously. It does suck to see people be swallowed by it on occasion.
Disabled Adult with Severe Chronic Pain, Major Depressive Disorder, long-term cannabis user and former "daily" opioid user. I find all this to be on point. Cannabis actually seems to aggravate my psychiatric symptoms to some degree. But the decrease in opiates that cannabis allows me to manage outweighs the negatives. I'm down from 140mg/week to 50mg/week.
Cannabis lets me _forget_ that I'm hurting. I can't emphasize how important that is when rawdogging pain.
I'm very active in therapy and I manage to keep things under control. After years of experimentation, I've found this to be _my_ happy medium.
Everyone has to find their own path. I wish you luck.
Really good overview - now we need the same thing for alcohol, to put into perspective what occasional smoking weed vs. occasional drinking does
Thanks for telling me the reasons I realised already. Helps me move on.
I think the most important thing he said is to limit usage to people over 25 years old. Trust me fellah's, partaking as a teenager or college student just isnt' worth it.
seriously like i was never more confused or mentally unwell than i was in high school and college…weed “fixing” me would have been a temptation i absolutely could not have resisted
I hung out with the weed groups during college because they were the only ones not actively pushing me away. They were chill with me being present. I didn't smoke much. Occasionally or share 1 J with them some days. They would go for 3-4 a sesh.
Im currently trying to quit thc. Ive smoked heavy every day for last 10 years and i wish i didnt but i loved it so much. Everything you said made sense to what I've been thru. Im glad you've said the truth i respect that. Gonna try my hardest to overcome this addiction and this helps but its definitely NOT easy man
I've been wanting to step away from the reefer because it's too expensive to build a tolerance, but I also enjoy it, and it does help with my MDD, ADHD, and PTSD. This video helped me set a goal to backpedal to once a week, or only during an episode. Great video, Dr. K!
Haven’t smoked weed in roughly 9 months one of the best things I’ve done
Great video! I was thinking on this last night after i said outloud id been smoking since 17 with no more than a three day break. Not even getting "high" anymore but simply in a routine.
I do have a slipped disk in my lower spine and struggle with appetite. But these sound more and more like excuses rather than reasons.
Beyond that I've always relied on it to "let go" of the worlds emotions or people around me and their feelings. It builds up in me to a point i either want to explode or implode. Which is another form of "why meditate when i can roll a blunt"
All in all hella called out but not in a bad way. Always more work to be done 😌
Cannabis has always been 50/50 here, really helped my life and really harmed my life. A lot of the problems of the data will be how people use cannabis, what dosage, what time of day. what strain (cbd/thc,) what frequency etc
If we could talk about drug culture / education to maximise benefits and minimize harms we would see different results.
There's a difference in the benefit of me smoking a fat high thc joint with tobacco at a time of high stress / boredom to escape - eating dominoes and watching a film VS having some well dosed cannabutter, going to the gym or a yoga class, heading home to make dinner and finish up the day with some chores before preparing for a new one.
The reality is, the mass public are like the first example
I have Epilepsy and I will, occasionally, have CBD honey (with NO THC) in my tea in the evening. And it doesn't get me high, it can sort of quell some of the pre-seizure triggers I might have started to feel (like small twitches, headaches, some weird 'heart skips' if you will). But I've never been comfortable with weed, even when people would tell me "Hey pot can really help your seizures". Like, there are so many weird things that your brain COULD already do to you, that most of the people I know, even WITH neurological conditions, would rather use something CBD based and eliminate the "high" or euphoria state altogether.
I struggle immensely with depression and suicidal ideation and weed is a quick fix to stop those thoughts. I understand in the long run it’s turning into an addiction but it’s been the only thing that truly fixes those deep rooted issues. Working on quitting now
Marijuana has done nothing but hurt me and my career
you got all wrong, Marijuana is for those who want to avoid a career (and artists)
@@coldkuroithat's a very broad and generally incorrect observation
Maybe more specifically, daily cannabis use is for those who don't want those things /artists. I sort of get it.
We dont really understand your context I guess.
But that sounds like saying “alchohol has done nothing but hurt me and my driving skills on the highway”
@@BraveProgramZ looks like you smoke a lot of weed. 😂😂
A psychiatrist prescribed me with Rivotril medication for anxiety, 1/4 twice a day. I can confidently say that it helped me finish my studies. It helped me in many ways, frustration by being overly self critical while studying something new wasn't as painful, helped me not isolate as much which resulted in attending class, asking questions not just in class but also reaching out to people I've never talked to at the uni for help. Occasionally i would smoke weed while on it and it was scary, breathing stopped being automatic, i had to remind myself to breathe otherwise i was suffocating. Eventually Rivotril stopped working for me, probably built up tolerance
I think balancing cannabinoid ratios, CBD and CBG are 'non psychoactive' but when they are taken in combination with THC and Terpenoids they achieve the entourage effect. The Other non intoxicating cannabinoids seems like they are still psychoactive in the brain, but more like neuroprotective in the way it binds to the receptors and modulates their activity. I wonder if CBD/g can modulate the neurotransmissions of heavy marijuana users.
Not all cannabis is the same. How the plant is grown and cared for makes a massive difference. Especially when it comes to meditation. Dr K is right, daily use of a shamanistic medicine is not advised. Life just sucks for most of us, most of us were raised by shit parents and cannabis helps us manage life. It’s still an addiction and is just a coping mechanism for the inner pain. I changed my life as a daily user and it was my last my crutch to drop.
Hold on Dr. K. Gotta rip this fat dab rq.
I have social anxiety and at first, my social anxiety while being high felt worse than being sober. Currently, my social anxiety has improved over all from constant exposure to different social situations, both sober and high. I realized over time that while being high, my emotions are heightened and difficult to control, which led to some social dysfunction like crying uncontrollably during slight feelings of embarrassment. Since I began noticing these patterns over the past year, I’ve been trying to take better care of my emotional well being and at times, smoking weed did help me think through times of anxiety because it forced me to focus on one thing at a time and take things slow. I now try to practice this patience with myself in a sober state so soon I’ll be competent with putting this habit down.
Nothing is perfect. If it works it works .
Cannabis helped me lose a shit ton of weight, and put my t2 diabetes in remission. A1c 5.5 for over 3 years now. It helped me regain control over my health. It helped with pain, desensitize to overstimulation, and sensory discomforts, like sweating, and heat so I could be more active. Big problem with the current system is that prescribing it doesn't come with ongoing followup care and support across the medical professions. The guidance in using it effectively for different conditions just isn't there yet. Federal legalization
could really help .
And completely stopped drinking alcohol which was killing me.
@@habanerofirehow did weed help you lose weight??
@@TEEANVEE there's the million dollar question.
Something I have been exploring myself for the past four years. For some reason weightloss seemed easier while on cannabis than without. I believe it is multifaceted but possibly unique for me and my body chemistry. But it helps dull pain. It helps reduce hunger pains so intermittent fasting is easier, and movement feels better. It may or may not have chemical properties that affect metabolism. I had read that despite cannabis users consumming more calories than the average person, they also have lower body mass indexes. Does it possibly affect hormones which, especially for women, makes a huge difference in whether weightloss efforts are effective. When a woman is stressed or feels chronically unsafe, the body responds by conserving energy and stores more fat. The cannabis was a tool to healthier habits. Good habits build upon each other when you go into it with intention. It's something that I keep searching for available research on, but it's just not there yet. But basically when you feel good, it's eadier to build on habits that make you feel good. After awhile, the need for cannabis diminishes as restoration of healthy sleep, activities, and eating become integrated into lifestyle.
In time, I expect that we will get more structured care/advice for utilizing it for different conditions. Having protoclos and medical guidance is essential. It's different than other pharmaceuticals though, it is not precision medicine, but it can still be dialed in( to an extent) and have guidelines. There are absolutely ups and downs, risks alongside the benefits, and all those need to be considered and addressed. Full legalization can help alleviate many issues, and pave the way to better research and understanding of this plant.
when i was super depressed and suicidal weed did actually help because one of my biggest problems was every experience felt the same no matter what i was doing for years at that point, it was driving me insane. i think i got high a total of 15 times and never had any again. i think it worked like that for me because i genuinely did not enjoy it 70% of the time but it had such a strong effect i was able to reset during that time. the last time i got high was awful and effected me for about a year after
Your videos about Marijuana alone have begun to REALLY show me how much I'm maybe putting myself into the mental illness I'm in or at the least it's amplifying my negatives. Sooooo I gotta quit, I don't like being sick in general so I Mena I gotta treat the illness of my brain the same lol. Thank you
I had this friend who was always super passionate when they talked about things and since they became a stoner it felt like they did a 180 and it was just impossible trying to talk to them. Gg ff the friendship atp
dude im experiencing something similar…my friend who is a perma-stoner now only ever wants to watch reality tv, her podcasts, or scroll twitter when we’re together. we used to do all those things in small fun doses but can we CHAT?? go out and DO STUFF?
I stopped using THC when I realized what you said in the video. It doesn't work long term. Funnily enough, I've been off of it for a couple months and decided to go to my local gas station and get a cannawater just to relax for the day and the second I got home this video popped up on my feed. Spooky but also hilarious lol
Algorithm baby! It genuinely is freaky sometimes. We know our phones are tracking our whereabouts and listening to us all the time. We gave those permissions to the device. These can be turned off in the settings.
I was thinking of getting some for the weekend as well. This video pops up after that thought.
What does the research say for long term effects of weed for someone who has used it daily for a few months or years and then stopped? How long for a person to recover from them? Is it possible for some people to not ever recover fully?
I think this is a great video because i dont think weed is a crutch that helps you with your problems, it just feels like. It really should only be used to enhance your experience on a special occasion. I can say this as someone who smokes weed everyday because I don't want to i literally just cant stop cuz im addicted. I'm gonna try to take it slower and get to that once a month stage but for now i can confidentiality say i agree with dr.K. marijuana is not some cure all that will solve your problems and isnt something that should be used daily. Cuz i just smoke to basically feel normal and i bet once i stop smoking so frequently ill feel way better. Its just hard to get to that point since im ADDICTED. but yeah thats my take thank you.
Thank you Dr. K, I needed this one. I find a lot of the symptoms mentioned in this video are problems I deal with- especially replacing good solutions with the grass. I’m gonna try to cut back and get off, anyone who’s thinking about doing the same feel free to message me and maybe we can set up a system where we check in on each others progress or something and support thru the process! Love
Highly informative work Dr K , i can confirm that it does mess up the dopaminergic architecture big time and clearly the risks outweigh the short term benefits !
Anyone else feel kinda, like, alien with discussions like these? I don’t drink or smoke, never have in my life. Never felt like I needed to, but it’s like everyone around me no matter where I go has done before, does, or at least tolerates drinking or smoking.
Maybe I’m just too sensitive coming from both parents having histories of addiction in some shape or form, but it’s like… we don’t *need* this stuff, but we encourage it like a rite of passage. I’m always feeling like a total alien when it comes to stuff like this.
I feel alienated as someone who enjoys weed and alcohol
Hey Doc, thanks very much for all the useful advice and info. Here's some more for you. According to the book, Shamanism and Tantra in the Himalayas, Nepalese Shamans know cannabis as one of 108 different entheogenic plant medicines. Shamans told the authors that cannabis should not be used by normal people regularly. They said that the only people that should use cannabis, are witches (definition evil, bitter, no doubt traumatised old women who harm with their magic, as opposed to shamans, who heal). Given that I fit the definition of a witch as a neurodiverse post menopausal woman, and cannabis was originally a women's medicine, I'd like to see trials on my demographic before being convinced that it's bad for me.
Good to see a Honest clinical Doctor on youtube.
Good luck Mate
Great video Doc. I absolutely love cannabis, and I absolutely use too much. I take it orally for sleep and has been consistently effective the last few years, but smoking seems to have a much lesser effect for sleep. I’m actively cutting back at the moment and will most likely scale back to an occasional user. It’s very subjective for me, I’ve never suggest anyone smoke weed for sleep, but low dose thc edible oil works great for me even in the long run(ugh is it expensive though). Super helpful conversation Doctor, keep em coming!!
This... Makes a lot of sense. Saddening, but it makes sense.
Anecdotally, I began taking CBD supplements to help with my anxiety and stress. Worked wonders... For all of a few weeks. Then, I began to notice it coming back. Was hoping it wasn't me building a tolerance, but this kind of confirms it...
Also kinda depressing to know that the same thing happens with actual medication like Xanax... So then that begs the question, if this stuff helps in the short term but not in the long term, what are people supposed to do?
Weed users get so pissed when you tell them it's not all rainbow and sunshine. Like alcoholics and hard drug users are even more chill when confronted.
Tbf there's been a lot of lies and stigma associated with use . People were gaslighted into thinking it's all bad.
If you're doing it in moderation and for the right reasons it can be beneficial.
@@Candidoppyeah i think OPs point though is that because it had been so gaslighted in the horrible direction people now gaslight it in a positive light and some people dont realize what they are doing by calling weed perfect
It’s about balance
@@JustSkram addicts get pissed not all users are addicted same with alcohol
I had some trouble with THC addiction this year and went to an online community for help/guidance as I was experiencing THC withdrawal. I was honestly shocked by the response that I got from this space that was supposed to be for promoting moderation and supporting each other through tolerance breaks. People told me I was imagining things when I described my withdrawal symptoms. After what I experienced, I know first hand that there is not enough honest conversation happening about what weed does and how it can affect your mind and body. I had heavy daily use for about three months and experienced very, very unpleasant withdrawal when I stopped cold turkey. I had to take time off from work and needed support from my family to get through it. People in this online community were telling me that there's no way I could be having that kind of withdrawal after only using for a few months. But there I was, living it. I've been off weed for over a month now and my memory is still not back to normal. It only took a few months of me having a sort of breakdown and turning to weed as an escape for me to cause this kind of damage to my brain and body. People say it's a "safe" drug because you can't OD and die from it. But it really is not safe. It can be used responsibly, but obviously I'm not someone who was using it responsibly. And it fucked up my life pretty bad for a while there. I could have lost my job and had to embarrass myself by going to family for help with an addiction that I had fallen into very quickly. And it's not easy now to stay away from it tbh, even though I know it's bad for me.
I love that there is more research in this field. It's definitely a very complex piece of nature. In duality, maybe it can help us learn more about nervous systems and consciousness. I personally experienced pros and cons. Marijuana aided me in recovering from a traumatic brain injury from a car accident. It's also helped to me deal with trauma. It's helped me reach states of bliss, new perspectives, and creativity. As I say this, I know it's not for everyone. And it's definitely a cruel mistress if you abuse it. Also, it can get in the way of messing with REM sleep. Stay curious, everyone.
One Love!
Always forward, never ever backward!!
☀️☀️☀️
💚💛❤️
🙏🏿🙏🙏🏼
As always, superb content! Thank you ❤
It’s incredibly difficult to access therapy if you’re using or dependent on cannabis. Many therapists either outright refuse to work with you while you’re using it or demand that you stop completely before beginning treatment. This approach feels unrealistic, especially because cannabis is often being used to manage or suppress something deeper that’s not being addressed.
What’s most frustrating-and a real shame-is that with proper therapy, cannabis use would likely decrease on its own. But that opportunity is being denied when therapists refuse to engage.
On top of that, it’s deeply painful to talk to a therapist about cannabis. They often focus entirely on the cannabis use rather than the underlying issues, which makes it feel impossible to move forward. This is such an important part of the conversation, and it’s being completely mishandled in so many cases.
Interesting stuff! I'd love to see the studies on how alcohol impacts similar conditions...
5:13 nice to see he is hotboxing while he records the video.
Me staring at the clock when this is uploaded 🍀⏰ 🐉👀
(4:20. It’s 4:20 lol)
😂 We gotta love Dr K for this 😂
I'm sorry but i have to disagree with one point:
K2/Spice is not a "THC without CBD" cannabis variant, it was as you said synthetic, but cannabinoids that are only similar and it still has other effects that also raises the negative effects. They were also not created to get a higher THC strain or similar, they were created to get around the law and sell it legally because the molecule is different.
A quote from the VUMC on why synthetic cannabinoids are problematic: "This may be due to SCBs being direct full agonists of the cannabinoid receptors, whereas THC is a partial agonist." And there are also a lot medical strains in the meantime that have 16-23% THC and only 0-1% CBD. And if they mixed that up in their papers then it's no wonder they get to that conclusions.
I have an uncle that has been using Weed for years, and then when it was still illegal here in Germany and he couldn't get anything else he switched to a newer variant of K2/spice.
He needed to be delivered in the hospital, had hallucinations etc. and needed to go into rehab for 2 months after that.
You can also see people smoke high concentrated THC as resin and similar in really high doses and they got nothing afterwards. So idk if you looked closer into that.
But i won't downvote for the disagreement. I think it's good to stay real and look at the facts and not praise it as the holy grail in medicine. (Even if i use it daily for my ADHD treatment)
But as you said: it's important to not forget the other things you need to do to work on your root-cause of the Problems.
Been trying to quit for around a month now, and as much as I miss it and love the feeling, I know now that it is not beneficial for me in the long run. I became dependent on it and doing it multiple times a day. As soon as you quit after using frequently and consistently for a while, it takes quite the toll on you
Thank you for this very enlightening, informative and guiding video. I loved it. That being said, I'm gonna go and get drunk now. (In my defense, that at least means I go outside, so its like... touching grass-adjacent 😇)
For me its a double edged sword. Im a jazz singer, tango dancer and freestyle rapper. My whole live revolves around improvisation. Whenever I smoke weed it guarantees that I will get into a flow state and have a ton of fun improvising.
However if I start using it too often it messes with my willingness to stick to my practice routines and it fucks up my mood.
And sometimes I cross the line and start smoking daily for a week or so and have to stop for a while.
But since ive started smoking weed 7 years ago I pretty constantly used about 1g/month and it didnt increase. I feel like its more beneficial for my well being than harmful.
Its like there is the playful side where you are having fun with what you learned and the serious side where you are drilling new lick, scales, rhythms, steps and whatever into your subconscious. And if I dont smoke weed I heavily lean to the latter. But the other side: being playful, forgetting about the technique, getting into the flowstate and just doing something for the sake of it is equally as important and weed helps me with that.
But if its too much weed I do too much of that and too little serious practice.
Dealing with trying to quit. Been a user for years. I agree with everything in this video. I'm so scared of quitting. Terrified.
If you think the cons outweigh the pros to the point that you want to take action, I think one of the biggest thing that can help is telling someone you trust. Letting them in on how you feel about it before stopping and then updating them about your experience. Anything in life is easier if you have someone you trust and connect with listening to your experience.
I'm surprised I don't see any positive comments here. Marijuana often makes me more motivated, especially a good sativa. As a PhD student and video editor, some of my most productive ideas, research, and art have come from a good high.
I experienced an ego death after smoking a bunch of weed and doing yoga with Alan Watts in the background. I just hope that me continuing to smoke doesn't backfire
It is so true that depression and anxiety create the potential for weed abuse, now when I meditate more often and undergo therapy for over six months, I don’t feel the need to use it so often and to have such large doses as previously and because of this, I believe that I can Use it safely and in moderation, as long as it doesn’t become a habit and isn’t part of a regular use
Thanks for the really informative video. This is really important to get out there, even if people don’t like it
I enjoyed your study. Keep it up. People can like it or not but at least they're informed.
thanks for the research Dr. K. i had no hopes with this to begin with xD its okay. its dope that we can get some insight in how it looks at a clinical way, and thats a lot already!
What i think is really hard to do scientifically is a subjective research study on for example people with manic depressive disorder how Marijuana affects them. For example for me I can sometimes smoke and go to gym, but then in some periods it gets to much and then I just get nowhere. What is key is to use everything the right way. For example also caffeine can be a source of energy but to much and to often it triggers anxiety and drains you. Nicotine can be a great stress relief l, but is very addicting. So my opinion is know your drugs, use them carefully and most of all learn to sit with your anxiety, practice mindfulness and love yourself. Be your best friend and laugh at your ego.
well said! i try to express alot of these thoughts but you said it all very well
Dr. K is on point, here.
Sometimes the truth is hard to swallow.
Cannabis made me able to tolerate my life for a long time. It did nothing to help me truly accept my situation and do something about it.
My takeaway of this is this: using weed to deal with your problems tends to keep you from dealing with the root of the problems.
But, how many people try to get help for their problems and just get pushed onto prescription medications, they don’t actually get the help they need to deal with the root cause, and are just expected to rely on medications to deal with their problems?
I’m not sure that statistic is ever revealed or talked about!
So is it wrong for those people to choose the side effects of weed over the side effects of prescriptions?
Has Dr. K shared any insight on the new cbd cannabis types, since they proport to be non-psychoactive? I would love to hear it(haven't watched vid yet)
It was kinda painful emotionally to watch this video, being high and bipolar and trying to fix my life… thank you for the information, I guess I have to start my sober journey 😔
Ff you want your life to get better as a bipolar, you need to get away from weed. Far away from it, weed with bipolar is like seeing a forest fire coming your way and then deciding to hide in a 18 wheeler full of gasoline. It really sucks, I know what you feel, I wish I never had to stop too. But when you get clean for a long time, you start to look at the situation from afar and then learn how, why and what the substance was doing with you. Life with bipolar is shit, but it can be less shit. I hope you get well soon!
My anecdotal experience is everything Dr. K says applies to me. I don't drink any alcohol anymore, but to occasionally (less than 4x a month) use some marijuana when 1. I am in a good mental space 2. Just for the purpose of relaxing It never helped as a self medication tool and now my experiences with it are better because I have better boundaries. It also hurt my ability to socialize so for me it worked best to watch a chill movie or listen to music for relaxing. I never tried marijuana until I was 25 and don't take a very high dose.
I have schizoaffective disorder with bipolar II. I used cannabis for many years to help with depression and relaxation. The slight hallucination provided by cannabis did not affect my schizophrenia and felt different than the schizophrenia. I also felt emotionally balanced and relaxed from stress.
im interested in your use of “used”-does that mean you eventually stopped using it (at least in a self-medicating way) when it stopped serving you? that to me indicates a non-addictive, healthy use tbh
im curious because my sister was diagnosed with bipolar AFTER smoking a ton caused an extended delusional psychosis, and she has understandably not smoked since
@crstph I don't use currently because I live in a men's house with rules.
I have Hippocampal Sclerosis and I found out in 2014. I was found seizing in my sleep. I have been smoking cannabis since my early 20's. I was prescribed Keppra, but recently weened myself off of it at the beginning of the year. Haven't had a diurnal seizure thus far.
Thanks for a balanced perspective on this topic
I fully support what you say here, pot is addictive and may cause problems
After 10 years of daily/weekly/monthly and occasional weed usage my conclusion to a healthy consumption is the following;
- don't smoke before 18 and if u do, do it once at a cricle of friends you a comfortable with beeing yourself.
- don't smoke daily u have to trust me on that one
- do not use to cope with trauma or at least only temporary (it's important that you have someone you can talk to/reflect)
- if possible don't smoke alone (except if you're sick)
- always respect the substance!
Just hit over five months pot free a few days ago. Mental clarity, anxiety, amount of negative/paranoid thoughts have gone down significantly. The tradeoff is having to deal with anhedonia, boredom, and lack of joy that pot would bring so easily.
Very good video, I am glad you didn't give in to the pressure to message the data into the answer a wider audience might want. I am a junior doctor in Australia where prescription cannabis can now be prescribed as a treatment for anxiety, depression and insomnia and am yet to see a patient who has benefited in those cases. I don't think it should be criminalised but prescribing it gives it a sense of safety to so many people.
I used to LOVE smoking weed, but using it habitually didn't help me in any part of my life. And after being stoned everyday for a while being sober feels quite refreshing I'm so much more mentally present and I'm better at pretty much everything, I now reserve smoking for when I've got nothing better to do and want to veg out and watch a movie or play my synths and create interesting textures.
I love the good effects of weed, it helped me get through a lot of psychical issues and my social anxiety,just realized how pointless it was to feel anxious in certain situations like talking to strangers etc. But the sideeffect of being lazy is horrible and id like to get rid of it and its so easy to fall into it and just lay down and melt into chair instead